-HER-

"Why did you come here then?" He demanded heatedly while looking me dead into the eyes. It was as if he had the ability to look into my soul.

To see you. "Because I wanted to see the festival," I told him instead. It was hard to maintain my determination while my eyes were locked with his. The intensity in them was making me falter and driving my wolf closer and closer to losing control. The mate bond was very strong and overwhelming sometimes.

I wondered if it was like this or if this was more intense in my case because of his powerful lycan and our differences. I didn't know but I was sure that if we weren't surrounded by so many people then we'd have been already tearing each other's clothes apart. I could see the intense lust and desire simmering in his eyes and how his body looked slightly tensed.

It was as if he was fighting himself. The tension surrounding us didn't help us at all. My wolf was already driving me crazy to be so close to him. I wondered if the mate bond was as intense on his side as well.

"You know women aren't allowed here," He told me next grimly.

"I know," I told him pointedly.

"Then why did you come?" He asked me again, this time much more grimly. I could see him stripping me naked in his head.

"Because I wanted to," I told him adamantly. I wasn't going to give him the truth yet. I came to the festival solely because to meet him and talk about our last encounter. I wanted some sort of closure.

I wanted to know where this was headed, where we were headed. If he really didn't want me then why didn't he simply reject me and move on? Why did he leave me hanging? If he didn't feel like he could reject me then it was fine.

I'd reject him and we could live in peace...at least that was how I was perceiving it.

He slightly narrowed his eyes at me due to the response and leaned in a bit too close and muttered against my ear, "You're not good at lying, Celeste,"

This made my heart race even more and I was again swallowing down the lump building in my throat. If anything, the tension between us rose even more and there was nothing helping it to ease.

"I'm not lying," I told him but he shook his head. There was this look on his face that told me that he wasn't buying this no matter what. He spoke next, the darkness in his voice was very clearly audible, "I'm asking you for the last time, Celeste. Why did you come here?"

I looked him dead in the eyes and told him with the same dark tone, "Because I wanted to see the festival,"

I knew my answer had ticked him off this time. There was a combination of anger and frustration simmering in his eyes with some other emotions that I couldn't comprehend. His jaw was set as he glared at me. There was a muscle ticking in his jaw and his body seemed to have grown tenser.

Without a warning, he clutched my wrist painfully under the table, making me gasp. I tried to shift away from him but he tugged me towards him until the side of my thigh was pressed against his. He then leaned into me and spoke very huskily against my ear, "Lie to me as much as you want right now but once we are alone, I know all the ways to get the truth out of your lips,"

I shivered at his words and something between my thighs pulsed, making me squeeze them harder. My body grew slightly hot, especially after feeling his hot lips brush against my ear and his hot breath fanning my jaw. I sat still for a moment and pursed my lips in a thin line.

I didn't dare look at him at that moment because I was scared I would lose control and do something that would get me into more trouble.

Fortunately, the drinks had arrived by now, giving me an opportunity to distract myself from the fact that the side of his body was pressed against mine and he was still holding my wrist under the table with the same crushing pressure, promising some bruises on my skin later.

I frowned when I saw the drinks. Everyone was having beer except for me. It was a very light drink. I glared at the other lycan who had ordered the drinks.

"What?" He frowned at my reaction. Ezekiel groaned before pushing his drink towards me. I instantly took it and gulped it down because I need something to calm my racing heart. It was slowly making me feel dizzier and less focused on what was happening around me.

I remained silent for the most part as I heard Ezekiel talk with his second in command, whose I caught to be Tryfon. They were mostly talking about the guests and the other people he was supposed to meet that day. Meanwhile, I looked out of the window to spot my wolves.

They were currently nowhere to be seen. I needed to find them soon but what would I tell them? They would be worried about me anyway and they'd want to know where I'd disappeared and how I got back. My mind was already spinning the wheels to make up stories while I glanced at Ezekiel and Tryfon from the corner of my eyes.

From what they were discussing, it seemed like they were planning to take me with them. I could use the opportunity to escape and find my group again. I sat quietly for the rest of the time and plotted a good plan to escape.

After we finished the drink, we headed out of the pub. The third in command, whose name I caught to be Velus was already waiting for us outside the pub.

His tall frame leaned against the door and his eyes fixed on the entrance. He eyed me curiously before stepping by my side. Ezekiel left my side and took the lead with Tryfon, leaving me behind. Velus followed me closely, keeping an eye on me.

I was relieved to be out of that pub again for the moment. Ezekiel was busy talking with Tryfon and another lycan whom I recognized to be the host of this festival. I followed them as they met the other special guests. Velus was keeping an eye on me meanwhile. He would lowly growl at me if I ever dared to step away from them.

This didn't discourage me. I kept looking for my crowd. I wasn't going to give up so easily.

Ezekiel would glance over his shoulder at me once in a while as if making sure that I was with them. Apart from this, he really seemed to be busy with guests.

I was very anxious at first for not being able to spot my group. I wondered if they were still looking for me or if they had given up and had gone back to Zaeris. If they did so then I'd kill every single one of them. I was growing more and more anxious when I wasn't able to spot them even after some time.

My insides lit up when I was finally able to spot one of the triplets in the crowd. Turned out that they were still looking for me. I looked around at the lycans who seemed busy with their own work. Even Velus was talking to one of the guests and a crowd was slowly starting to approach us.

A smile climbed on my lips. I was going to use this opportunity to sneak away from them. I waited patiently for the crowd to approach our way. I kept glancing at the lycans. Ezekiel was in a very deep conversation with a guest along with the host. Tryfon and Velus were listening to him as well and weren't paying me attention.

As the crowd got closer and closer to us, I started to step away from the lycans very slowly. They seemed to have forgotten about me all of a sudden and I wasn't complaining. Right when the crowd reached us, I stepped into it and instantly blended into it.

I kept my eyes on the lycan. They still hadn't noticed that I wasn't on their side anymore. I kept walking with the crowd until I noticed one of the triplets. I instantly broke free from the crowd and started jogging towards the triplets. I was about to yell for them but I stopped and instead waved my hand at them but they were unable to spot me.

I kept edging closer to them, navigating through the crowd. Just when I was close enough to them, I felt someone grab me and drag me away all of a sudden. I wanted to scream but I didn't.

It happened all of a sudden. One moment, I was in the crowd, and in the next moment, Ezekiel was pinning me against a shop wall in an empty and dark alley before growling down at me, "Where do you think you were going?"

_

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